Life — July 15, 1926 — page 5: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This page from *Life* magazine contains several short humorous pieces: **"If Anacreon"** (top right) is a poem by Harry Kemp mocking classical poets. It jokes that ancient Greek and Roman poets like Horace would have written differently if they'd encountered bootleg alcohol during Prohibition—their work would have suffered because cheap liquor quality was poor. **"Enlargement of the Heart"** tells of a man with hypochondria who visits a doctor complaining of heart trouble. The joke hinges on the doctor's diagnosis: the man's "enlarged heart" is revealed to be emotional/moral rather than medical—he's simply generous or overly sympathetic. **"Action!"** (bottom) shows a couple where one says he'd go to the world's end for the other, and the response is essentially "then get started"—a joke about marriage realities. These are typical *Life* magazine humor pieces from the Prohibition era.